Editorial: A life lesson from a perplexing pair

Thursday

Nov 30, 2017 at 12:01 AM

Last week we got the latest installment in the ongoing saga of arguably the most perplexing residents of Polk County: Jeffrey McGinty and his girlfriend, Tabitha Drake.

They reside in Bartow — more specifically, on a sidewalk in Bartow, usually just off one of the city’s main drags. They are homeless, and as chronicled by The Ledger’s Suzie Schottelkotte, they have lived on city benches and sidewalks in Bartow and Winter Haven — when they aren’t residents of the county jail — for at least 18 months.

McGinty and Drake are living proof that despite our wealth, our power, our technology, our programs, our expertise, our generosity and our compassion that people sometimes don’t slip through the cracks — rather, they actively avoid a crack that many confused potential benefactors believe would improve their lives.

McGinty and Drake have no visible means of support other than the money and gift cards provided by strangers. They have rejected help from family, city officials, law enforcement, social service agencies, churches and other assorted individual do-gooders. They have turned down offers of hotel stays and other types of living arrangements, including a free apartment for a year.

They won’t talk about how they got where they are, what they intend to do, or where they might be going. They remain peaceful, non-threatening and kind to passers-by whose aid is politely refused. They occasionally present a nuisance. One thing they cling to is their garbage, gathered in bags and sometimes including human feces. At times it has mounted to a pile weighing a couple hundred pounds, but gets disposed of when prompted or assisted by police.

The garbage collection has gotten them arrested for littering. Staying too long on a bench outside a Winter Haven hospital got them arrested for trespassing. Remaining in place during Hurricane Irma got them arrested for violating the declared curfew. In all, police have hauled them in at least eight times within two years, including last week for evaluation under the state’s Baker Act, which allows for mandatory commitment and psychological help.

But the charges are misdemeanors, viewed by local judges as more punishable by fines than jail time. The Sheriff's Office told us their most recent arrest ended with them being released on their own recognizance.

Yet they ignore the fines. That, however, doesn’t restrict their liberty, as a county judge has found them incompetent to stand trial. In other words, McGinty and Drake cannot face the music because, per the judge, they don't understand the melody. The state is not mandated to provide mental health treatment because the charges are not felonies. When authorities took them for Baker Act exams, doctors released them. They were not viewed as a threat to the physical safety of themselves or to others. They sidestep mental health programs through the courts because they have declined to seek help, as is necessary.

Local officials have said repeatedly that they don’t want their dealings with McGinty and Drake to be seen as criminalizing homelessness. That’s a good thing, as being poor is not a crime. But one can’t blame these officials for feeling like Bill Murray in “Groundhog Day,” as their experiences with this couple seem to run on an endless loop that never reaches a resolution.

Our community has created a wonderful social-safety network geared to help people like McGinty and Drake. But what does the community do with folks who stay beyond the reach of that or government programs? The answer baffles those closest to the problem.

“We don’t know what to do with them. This is sort of an anomaly,” Laura Lee Gwinn, executive director of the Homeless Coalition of Polk County, told us.

Gwinn said it’s agonizing that McGinty and Drake have refused countless offers of help. “They tell us, ‘Please stop trying. Don’t you have somebody else to help?’ But we tell them we can’t just sit there and watch you die on the sidewalk.”

“If you can convince them to find help, we’re ready to pull the trigger,” Gwinn said of anyone who might be able to persuade the couple to seek aid. “Everybody wants to help, but maybe that’s just our opinion that they need help. Maybe we should just respect that and go, OK, we’re here if you change your mind.”

For those who encounter the pair, that might be the best advice, painful though it may be. Although we're at a moment on the calendar when our goodwill and charitable instincts overflow, we should recognize that some among us believe the best we can do for them is to simply leave them alone — and find someone else to help. The need, after all, is endless.

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